Last year, British doctors went on strike for the first time since 1975 over proposed changes in their contracts. So, what happens when doctors strike? One of the more interesting things that happens is that the mortality rate drops. A recent study of the medical impact of doctor strikes included groups of doctors who went on strike for between 9 days and 17 weeks. Researchers found that not a single group showed that death rates increased during the weeks of the strikes. The study suggests that this is due to the fact that elective and non-emergency surgery tends to stop during a doctors’ strike, and a surprising amount of mortality occurs following this kind of surgery. As soon as elective surgery resumed, there was a rise in deaths. However, when nurses go on strike, mortality increases. So, it would seem that the public should worry much more about nurses going on strike than doctors.

Sunday, June 7, 2020

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On This Day

1968 Sirhan Sirhan is indicted for the assassination of US Senator Robert Kennedy. He was sentenced to life in prison. He has been up for parole 15 times, denied each time on the grounds that he has not expressed adequate remorse for his crime.

Fact of the Day

The 1883 Eruption of Krakatoa in Indonesia was so loud that it was heard over 3,000 miles away, which is the equivalent of hearing a sound from Ireland while you are in Boston. It ruptured the eardrums of sailors over 40 miles away.

Nature Oddities

Rats can go up to 2 weeks without water, longer than camels, who can only go 3-5 days without water.

Food and Drink

English legend claims that the name “sirloin steak” comes from when King James I of England was so impressed by the quality of his steak that he knighted the loin of beef, which was referred to thereafter as “Sirloin.”